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New tank from CL, how good of a deal is this? And stocking.....

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I recently just moved into a new house and have a completely empty room to house tanks. I had a 40g and a 75g and rehomed the few fish i had and wanted to start from scratch when I moved. I think I'm gonna sell my other two tanks after seeing this deal on Craigslist. He says its a 125 Gallon Tank at 72 inches long- 22 inches wide- and 26 inches tall with a stand and lid for $200. I did the volume calculator and with those dimensions it says its a 178 gallon tank. Is that right or am I doing something wrong here?

I have the space and some equipment, and I have the money to invest in better stuff, especially after selling off some things I have. But now the question is what to do with it if I get it. my 70g was a brackish with some F8 Puffers, and I'm thinking about getting a Fahaka Puffer and that's it. The idea of a super community tank also sounds pretty awesome with that much space.

My 38 gallon community was pretty basic, a few platys and mollys and some dojo loaches. I want to do something exotic and different and i have a blank canvas and an open budget.

There is a standard 125 gallon aquarium that is 72"x18"x24". The dimensions he gives are not standard, and, as you found, not equal to 125 gallons. So you'll definitely want to get that straightened out. I've dealt with craigslist sellers that do not know what size their own tanks are.

A rule of thumb I've used for used tanks is that $1/gallon is a decent deal. That's just for the tank itself, so if the tank truly is the dimensions he's listing, and the stand that comes with it is acceptable to you, then you've got a pretty good deal.

The tank is glass, I don't have anyway of moving it, and he said for an extra $50 he'd deliver it the roughly 60 miles round trip. The stand was somewhat basic with no doors or anything but I can make some improvements to it. From all the picture is seems to be in very good condition and relatively new and clean at least.

based on those dimensions it still seems like a steal even with the extra $50 for delivery into my house and the guy helping move it.

Now that I'm a homeowner and know I'll be here a while, I really want to go all out on this. I've seen a lot of people really love oscars/severums and other cichilds and I havent owned something that gets so big before. Any suggestions on stocking with an oscar(s?) being the centerpiece?

That's a good deal to me. For O"s I'd do 2x and a 1 sev, if you get little, then I canister filter is a must and some hang on backs as well. Then weekly 50% water changes. In the end the Os may bully the sev and you may have to rehome him

I would take the delivery fee of $50 for a 60 mile round trip. Gas is pretty expensive out here. I would ask before you bought it for a remeasure of the tank though, because you can get screwed on CL. Also I would suggest against having just the one puffer, it could get pretty boring.

Are you set on doing a freshwater tank? Want to try and venture into SW?

Think with logic and rationality more than emotion. Act with moderation and consideration. Contemplate ideals and realistic goals and weigh out possibilities and options. Temper not with personal delusions or false hope but learn to accept and move on.

In my mind I seem somewhat set on FW as I still only have a couple years experience in FW under my belt. The massive costs of SW initially are what's turning me off. I have the $$ but it doesnt mean I want to spend it.